Eric Alexander and Harold Mabern (Friday through Sunday) Mr. Alexander, a tenor saxophonist with a taste for smartly surging hard bop, teams up with Mr. Mabern, a veteran pianist and collaborator, in a band anchored by the bassist John Webber and the drummer Joe Farnsworth. Their special guest is the singer Gregory Porter; the repertory will be drawn partly from the classic album “John Coltrane and Johnny Hartman.” At 8, 10 and 11:30 p.m. on Friday and Saturday and 7, 9 and 10:30 on Sunday, Smoke, 2751 Broadway, at 106th Street, (212) 864-6662, smokejazz.com; $35 cover on Friday and Sunday. (Chinen)

★ The Bad Plus (Friday through Sunday) Since forming about a decade ago, this acoustic power trio — Reid Anderson on bass, Ethan Iverson on piano, David King on drums — has been known for its canny twists on the pop repertory, something the band pushed to the limit with “For All I Care,” an album released two years ago. “Never Stop” (E1), last year’s brave release, swings the pendulum the other direction: all originals, start to finish, with everybody pitching in. At 9 and 11 p.m. on Friday and Sunday and 9 and 11:30 p.m. on Saturday, Village Vanguard, 178 Seventh Avenue South, at 11th Street, West Village, (212) 255-4037, villagevanguard.com; $25 cover on Friday and Sunday, with a one-drink minimum. (Chinen)

Richard Bona (Friday through Sunday) Richard Bona, the Cameroonian bassist and vocalist, conveys an unsinkable positivity in his music, as well as an unforced commitment to musical globalism. He leads a band stocked with sympathetic players like the trumpeter Michael Rodriguez and the pianist Osmany Paredes. At 7:30, 9:30 and 11 p.m. on Friday; 7:30 and 10:30 p.m. on Saturday; and 7:30 and 9:30 p.m. on Sunday, Jazz Standard, 116 East 27th Street, Manhattan, (212) 576-2232, jazzstandard.net; $35 on Friday and Sunday. (Chinen)

Chris Botti (Friday through Sunday) Mr. Botti, whose adult-pop savvy and controlled but brooding trumpet sound have made him a high-gloss global superstar, descends on the Blue Note each year around this time for an extended run. As usual he has a slick but substantial band, featuring serious musicians like the keyboardist Geoffrey Keezer and the drummer Billy Kilson. At 8 and 10:30 p.m. on Friday and Sunday and at 7 and 10 p.m. on Saturday, Blue Note, 131 West Third Street, Greenwich Village, (212) 475-8592, bluenote.net; $75 cover at tables, $40 at the bar, with a $5 minimum on Friday and Sunday. (Chinen)

★ Dizzy Gillespie All-Star Big Band: Frank Wess 90th Birthday Celebration (Monday) In addition to being a bebop pioneer and a dazzling trumpeter, Dizzy Gillespie was one of jazz’s better talent scouts. That point is hammered home by the alumni in this big band, notably the saxophonist Frank Wess, whose 90th birthday falls on Wednesday. Also on board are the saxophonist Jimmy Heath, the pianist Cyrus Chestnut and the drummer Lewis Nash; standing in for Gillespie, on the horn and in the driver’s seat, is Roy Hargrove. At 7:30 and 9:30 p.m., Dizzy’s Club Coca-Cola, Frederick P. Rose Hall, Jazz at Lincoln Center, 60th Street and Broadway, (212) 258-9595, jalc.org; $30 cover, $10 students, with a minimum of $10 at tables, $5 at the bar. (Chinen)

End-of-the-Year Improv Party (Friday and Saturday) John Zorn, the indomitable alto saxophonist and composer, is also the proprietor of the Stone, where he sometimes convenes a clutch of collaborators for a sonic free-for-all to benefit the club. Among his fellow improvisers on Friday are the guitarist Thurston Moore, the trumpeter Frank London and the drummer Matt Wilson; on Saturday it will include the trombonist George Lewis (and perhaps the guitarist Marc Ribot, who’ll spearhead a later New Year’s Eve set in the same room). At 8 and 10 p.m. on Friday and 8 p.m. on Saturday, the Stone, Avenue C and Second Street, East Village, thestonenyc.com; $25. (Chinen)

Tom Harrell Chamber Ensemble (Thursday and Jan. 6) The name of this engagement should be a tip-off: Tom Harrell, the postbop trumpeter, will pursue his version of a jazz-classical crossover, augmenting his fine working quintet with the woodwinds specialist Dan Block, the violinist Meg Okura and the cellist Rubin Kodheli. At 7:30 and 9:30 p.m., Jazz Standard, 116 East 27th Street, Manhattan, (212) 576-2232, jazzstandard.net; $25 cover; $30 on Jan. 6. (Chinen)

★ Wynton Marsalis: The Music of Jelly Roll Morton & King Oliver (Friday and Saturday) Mr. Marsalis returns to a familiar concept here, playing his horn and leading a repertory tribute to two of jazz’s early cornerstones. He leads a midsize group mainly consisting of his colleagues from the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra; it’s a foolproof booking, which partly explains why the engagement sold out well in advance. At 7:30 and 10 p.m. on Friday and 7:30 and 11 p.m. on Saturday, Dizzy’s Club Coca-Cola, Frederick P. Rose Hall, Jazz at Lincoln Center, 60th Street and Broadway, (212) 258-9595, jalc.org; sold out. (Chinen)

★ Brad Mehldau Trio (Tuesday through Jan. 8) The pianist Brad Mehldau has led this iteration of his pace-setting trio — with the bassist Larry Grenadier and the drummer Jeff Ballard — since 2005, and it has evolved into a graceful powerhouse, equally savvy about groove and harmony. There’s still no better place to hear the band than the Village Vanguard, a special room for Mr. Mehldau and for his devoted base. This run will sell out, if it hasn’t already. At 9 and 11 p.m., Village Vanguard, 178 Seventh Avenue South, at 11th Street, West Village, (212) 255-4037, villagevanguard.com; $25 cover, with a one-drink minimum. (Chinen)

Jimmy Owens: The Monk Project (Tuesday through Jan. 8) Drawing from “The Monk Project” (IPO), his warmly soulful new tribute to Thelonious Monk, the trumpeter Jimmy Owens reunites the album’s sterling cast: Wycliffe Gordon on trombone, Marcus Strickland on tenor saxophone, Howard Johnson on tuba and baritone saxophone, Kenny Barron on piano, Kenny Davis on bass and Winard Harper on drums. At 7:30 and 9:30 p.m., with an 11:30 set on Jan. 6 and 7, Dizzy’s Club Coca-Cola, Frederick P. Rose Hall, Jazz at Lincoln Center, 60th Street and Broadway, (212) 258-9595, jalc.org; $30 and $35 cover, students $15, with a minimum of $10 at tables, $5 at the bar. (Chinen)

Nicholas Payton Quartet (Tuesday through Thursday) Over the past 12 months, the trumpeter Nicholas Payton has earned a reputation as jazz’s chief polemicist, though he probably wouldn’t sanction that description. He hasn’t become any less compelling a musician in the meantime, as he’ll set out to demonstrate with a two-part engagement next week. This first part features him with an ace rhythm section consisting of the pianist Lawrence Fields, the bassist Vicente Archer and the drummer Ulysses Owens. At 8:30 and 11 p.m., Birdland, 315 West 44th Street, Clinton, (212) 581-3080, birdlandjazz.com; $30 and $40 cover, with a $10 minimum. (Chinen)

Christian Sands Trio (Tuesday through Jan. 7) A gifted young pianist working with all the right fundamentals — strong technique; clear ideas; the imprimatur of some of jazz’s savviest mentors, here and gone — Christian Sands presides over an After-Hours run. His band mates are the bassist Matthew Rybicki and the drummer Ulysses Owens. At 11 p.m. Tuesday through Thursday, Dizzy’s Club Coca-Cola, Frederick P. Rose Hall, Jazz at Lincoln Center, 60th Street and Broadway, (212) 258-9595, jalc.org; $10 to $20 cover, $5 to $10 students, with a minimum of $10 at tables, $5 at the bar. (Chinen)

Mike Stern Band (Friday through Sunday) A jazz-rock guitarist with impeccable pedigree, Mike Stern convenes what amounts to a jazz-rock supergroup here: the trumpeter Randy Brecker, the bassist John Patitucci and the drummer Dave Weckl. At 8 and 10 p.m. on Friday and Sunday and 7 and 10:30 p.m. on Saturday, Iridium Jazz Club, 1650 Broadway, at 51st Street, (212) 582-2121, theiridium.com; $40 cover, with a $10 minimum. (Chinen)

Stranahan-Zaleski-Rosato Trio (Tuesday) This young cooperative, consisting of the drummer Colin Stranahan, the pianist Glenn Zaleski and the bassist Rick Rosato, recently released an estimable album, “Anticipation” (Capri). Its meticulously flowing sound reflects a sizable debt to the original Brad Mehldau Trio, but with a few personal modifications, which seem likely to shine clearer in person. From 8:30 to 11 p.m., Smalls Jazz Club, 183 West 10th Street, West Village, (212) 252-5091, smallsjazzclub.com; $20 cover. (Chinen)